


time may change me

by inlovewithimpossibility



Series: Snapshots [29]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Episode: s07e16 Star City 2040, F/M, Missing Scene, Olicity Summer Sizzle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-29
Updated: 2019-07-29
Packaged: 2020-07-25 17:28:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20029588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inlovewithimpossibility/pseuds/inlovewithimpossibility
Summary: John Diggle never imagined his life would lead him here.Don’t get him wrong, he’s very appreciative of his wonderful wife, his two happy and healthy children and a job that gives him the chance to make a difference.He just never could've imagined seventeen years ago that he’d be leading a life that doesn’t involve Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak.(missing moment from 7x16: Felicity calls John in a panic when Mia runs away from home)





	time may change me

**Author's Note:**

> Am I severely pushing the boundaries of what counts as 'Olicity' here for OSS? 100%. But we could all use some more Delicity in our lives and this fic involves Mia so I'm counting it ;)

John Diggle never imagined his life would lead him here.

Don’t get him wrong, he’s very appreciative of his wonderful wife, his two happy and healthy children and a job that gives him the chance to make a difference.

He just never could've imagined seventeen years ago that he’d be leading a life that doesn’t involve Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak.

Knightwatch took off faster than he and Lyla could have imagined. Once Lyla stepped back the minute ARGUS began to take a turn for the dodgy, the two of them decided that they wanted to make a difference in the best way they know how. It takes them away from JJ and Connor more than he would like but to provide them with the stability in such a tumultuous time is truly priceless.

The random evening in March is just another day in his mind. Connor is with Lyla at Knightwatch and he’s unsure what JJ is up to. With his kids being grown now, knowing where they are 24/7 is less important to them as parents as long as they are aware that their parents will always be there if they need them. He’s grateful for the rare evening off as he sinks into the couch and he’s just getting into the show he’s watching when his phone begins to ring.

“Alright, alright.” He sighs as he forces his tired body off the couch and makes his way over to the island where he left the device when he walked in the house. The number is unknown which is strange in this day and age and on top of that, his phone makes him aware that it’s untraceable. It’s a part of Knightwatch technology and Digg frowns, pressing answer call.

“Hello? Who is this?” He asks as he holds the phone to his ear.

“John? John, please tell me that’s you?” The frantic voice on the other end of the line begs and John frowns as recognition dawns on him.

“_Felicity?” _He hisses, falling back into his chair in surprise.

“Oh thank god. John, I…” She’s very obviously panicked and scared and John forces himself not to think about what that might mean before he knows the facts.

“Felicity, what’s going on? Are you alright?” He asks and he hears her shaky breaths.

“No, I… she’s gone, John. She left.”

John has seen Felicity Smoak through numerous heartbreaks. He watched as Oliver pushed her aside for _years, _slept with women right under her nose and then after finally accepting her into his life, broke her heart by breaking her trust. Not only that but finally, when it seemed like these two were finally back on track and working towards their happy lives together, they were torn apart by their underlying need to be heroes. John had been there to pick Felicity up off the ground, to help her focus on what she needed to, _Mia. _The years of separation has put a wedge of time and space between them but at this moment, hearing Felicity as emotional as she is now, pulls him right back and his heart leaps out for the woman he still considers his sister.

“Who left?” He questions with trepidation even though he has a rather good idea of who she’s talking about.

“_Mia. _We had this huge fight and she left and I don’t know where she is and I don’t know what to do and I…” Her voice is fast and frantic and John knows she’s worked herself up to the point of complete distress.

“Okay, okay, calm down. Take a few deep breaths.” He tells her, his ability to know what to say to Felicity somehow coming back in a moment. She does as he asks and John waits a moment before he begins to question her. “Did she say where she was going?”

“Star City. Oh god John, if anyone finds out who she is…” Felicity comments, her voice heading towards panic again and John winces.

“I know, Felicity. It’s okay, we’re going to make sure that she’s okay.” He tries to reassure her and he hopes that she’s taking deep breaths.

“How? I can’t pick anything up from the city because the surveillance is so bad and her DNA is written out of the system.” Felicity replies and John frowns. Taking a deep breath, he forces himself to remember that Felicity is not the young woman she was twenty years ago. This is a _mother, _hardened by loss and loneliness, and now the _only _person she has been able to hold close to her in twenty years has disappeared. This is not going to be solved by soft words and reassurances from days gone by.

“Hey, hey. Listen, I can send an agent into the city. They’re the best around. They’ll find her.” He tells her but even that doesn’t seem to assure her.

“She’ll know. She’s…” Felicity starts and then seems to catch herself. John can tell that she’s holding something back, that there’s something she’s not telling him, and he heaves a sigh. There was a day when the three of them could’ve never imagined not telling each other something but then Oliver had gone to prison and something switched in their dynamic. Even after that wound healed, the shreds of distrust between them had still lingered and only grown as time forced them apart.

“Felicity, for me to help, I need to know the facts,” John tells her and he hears Felicity heave a hefty sigh of her own. He imagines that she’s biting her lip in that subconscious way she tends to before he catches himself, reminding himself that he doesn’t even really know what his best friend looks like. Has she grown out her hair? Has she cut it? How have the years impacted her?

“You won’t be able to follow her. She’s far too alert for that.” Felicity finally admits and John frowns, unable to picture anything but the newborn he once briefly knew. He knows logically that Mia is now an adult as his own children are but the sparse details Felicity has given him over the years in their very limited correspondence have very pointedly not involved details about the child of his friends.

“She’s what… an eighteen-year-old?” He questions and he has to admit that what comes to mind when he pictures Mia is a mini-version of Felicity, glasses and all.

“John, she’s been training since she was four years old. Trust me, she will know if there is someone following her.” Felicity tells him, her voice level and even and seemingly unsure of the insanity of her words.

“Four years…? Jesus Felicity, how did you even…?” John questions. He knows that Felicity has raised Mia in an environment surrounded by ex-military personnel but when she’s limited their correspondence to only necessary communication, he highly doubts she trusted anyone she didn’t know to train her daughter.

“Nyssa. She’s been coming for about four months every year.” Felicity admits and there’s a strange tone to her voice, one John is not used to. It’s level and it's composed as if she’s not going to let anyone tell her that her decisions have been wrong.

John frowns for a moment as he thinks through what he’s being told. Felicity willingly invited Nyssa into her home for four months of the year for over fourteen years and didn’t think that was perhaps worth noting the few times they have communicated?

“So you’re telling me not only has your daughter been trained practically since she could walk, she’s been trained by perhaps the most skilled assassin in the world?” He questions, thinking about how insanely agile Mia must be by now.

“Yes,” Felicity states, no wavering in her voice whatsoever and John sighs.

“Okay.” He draws out, running a hand over his brow. He’s a little unsure of how to proceed here. His agents are good but the daughter of Oliver Queen who has been trained by a deadly assassin for fourteen years of her life? Yeah, even his best agents would struggle with that.

“_John. _Listen if you cannot help, I will go into the city myself and I do not care whether I get caught. I will find my daughter.” Felicity is obviously unimpressed with his silent pause and he winces at her words. That unbelievable determination and drive does not appear to have wavered over the past twenty years and he knows she will stick to her word.

“Okay, okay, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Felicity, if you show your face in Star City, the Glades police will have you in lockup in a micro-second.” He reminds her and receives only a frustrated sigh in reply.

“So, what’s your proposition?” She questions and John frowns. What is his proposition?

He thinks through the agents he has at his disposal and their strengths. From the way Felicity is speaking, she’s sure that his agents will not be able to beat Mia in combat which he has no doubt the young girl will initiate if she notices she’s being followed. It seems like undercover is their best option but there’s really only one person Mia _might _trust and it’s a big risk.

“John…” Felicity starts again and John frowns, cutting in before she declares that she’s already on her way to her suicide mission.

“Connor. He’s been trained as an agent, he’s one of our best but he’s close to Mia’s age and is fantastic at going undercover. He can keep an eye on her, keep her out of trouble.” He promises, thinking it through in his head. It truly does seem like this might be the best option. He has unwavering belief in Connor, he’s grown into a loyal, strong and true young man with exceptional skills in the field.

There’s silence on the other end of the line and John winces.

“Felicity, if I can’t send agents after her, this is the best I can do.” He reiterates and there’s another long pause before a relenting sigh.

“You’re sure she won’t find out?” She questions and _finally _there’s a crack in her shield. The vulnerability has crept back into her voice and John heaves a relieved sigh because this is a side of his friend he knows how to appeal to.

“He’s good, Felicity. She won’t know.” He promises even though he has no basis for it. It seems that Felicity is also unsure as she scoffs lightly.

“I want updates. I need to know that she is safe.” She states and John hums.

He takes a moment to consider how hard this must be for Felicity. For years Mia has been the only thing that Felicity has had any control over. She can’t know where her husband is, her son’s grandparents made it very clear for her to steer clear, and her own location has been determined by a city that has it out for her despite all the good she has done for it over the years. Mia and her safety has been the one thing that Felicity could regulate but children grow and they become adults and they have to flee the nest, no matter how hard it is.

“I will keep you updated when I know more.” He tells her and Felicity tuts on the other end of the line.

“No. I’ll call you.” She states and John sighs, rubbing his temple.

“Okay.”

“Okay. Bye, John. _Thank you.” _She tells him and John smiles as the warmth he remembers slides into her words. Felicity may have been hardened by her time in solitude but she’s still his sister, someone he would do anything for.

“That’s what family’s for, Felicity.” He reminds her and he hears her take in a shaky breath.

“Right… yes.” She comments before the line goes dead and John sighs, looking down at his phone.

He never imagined that this is where his relationship with Felicity would end up. One thing rains true, however. No matter what or how hard it is, he will always protect Felicity Smoak and her family. He just hopes those bonds will form between their children as well.

For now, he turns off the TV and heads back towards the door.

He’s got a son to brief and a niece to locate.


End file.
